InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ "Shards of Our Memories": The Soap Opera ❯ Chapter 4: As the World Turns ( Chapter 4 )

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Inuyasha.

A/N: Hey everyone! New chapter for all you readers- and Inuyasha and Kagome are going to meet in this one, so prepare for some fireworks! Please read, review and, of course, enjoy.

CHAPTER 4: As the World Turns

Excerpt from the October 14th Edition of Soap Weekly:

"Every soap fan is in for some big thrills and surprises with the new drama, `Shards of Our Memories,' from the folks over at Kakera Studios. The well-crafted soap stars hunky Kouga Murane and breakout star Kagome Higurashi. As the series began, viewers were enticed with a steamy forbidden romance between the lovers Maya Dupri(Higurashi) and Damien Court(Murane). The two meet at Damien's spa, where the beautiful Maya receives a massage from the handsome masseuse. It is love at first sight for the two…but there are complications in their relationship. Damien is a happily married man, with a beautiful wife (Jessie Court, played skillfully by Ayame Kogoro).

" Next Monday, on the third episode of everybody's favorite new soap, the hot couple is in for some big problems. Jessie, at first oblivious to their blooming relationship, sees Maya and her husband out on a date together. Suspicious of their actions, she hires a private investigator to uncover to truth. What will Damien and his new lover do? Can they be together despite the odds, or will this relationship end in pain? Tune in Monday at three to find your answer."

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Kagome cut the edge of the page carefully, determined on cutting out the complimentary Soap Weekly article without damaging even one letter of it. She had read the article at least twenty times over, smiling proudly whenever she read the words "breakout star" beside her name. Her stomach had given a little flutter the first time she had glanced at the article, noticing the (very flattering) picture of her and Kouga, looking very dramatic and posing in the living-room set.

It wasn't every day that you had your picture in a nationally-circulated magazine… She gently folded the paper in half and stuck it in her purse, so that she could tape it to her dressing-room mirror.

She breathed in soundly. --It's always nice to have a reminder of your success within arms' reach--, she thought to herself, humming a little tune as she closed the door of her apartment behind her, ignoring the loud noises of the trash truck rising from the street, and the howling noises from the toddler across the hall.

Kagome walked jauntily to the bus stop, looking forward to another interesting day of work at the "office." Kagome had been very busy of late, trying to memorize her lines at a breakneck pace, make all the rehearsals, and still act and look like a soap star should. Hiten and Sesshomaru were busy with public relations, and had been lining the actors up for interviews on morning talk shows, organizing press junkets, and buying billboard space, magazine ads and commercial time on the network. Whatever got them viewers…..

Of late, it had been a blurred whirlwind of flash photography and screaming members of the press.

Not that she didn't enjoy the work. Spending time with Kouga and Ayame had taught her worlds about acting and delivery, and she was enjoying the limelight. Already, fans were popping up all over the place. She had been receiving so many positive comments about the first two episodes from her family and friends, that it almost felt surreal.

Life as a star was no less fantastic than Kagome had imagined.

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The studio door was in heavy use that morning, delivery boys and actors, visitors and workers entering or leaving at every second.

As Kagome made her way up the concrete steps, she noticed a man with long, white hair entering the lobby ahead of her. For a brief moment, she made the assumption that it was Sesshomaru.

On second glance, she noticed the difference in this man's athletic swagger and bulkier limbs. Anyway, Sesshomaru wasn't one to walk around in a hooded sweatshirt and jeans….

As she moved towards the door, the man stopped to hold the door open, though he was barely even paying attention to the woman moving through the doorway. She smiled at the bred politeness, and grabbed his golden eyes with a quick "thank you."

Her heels echoed loudly in the tiled lobby as she disappeared into a crowd of loiterers at the other end of the room. She had already left him and his golden eyes behind, but those eyes remained narrowed in her wake, following her as she left. His face contorted slightly in pain and confusion as she walked off. After a moment of standing frozen with the door's handle still in his grip, he let the glass door shut, and walked dazedly to the hall connected to his brother's office.

Making his way slowly into Sesshomaru's expansive private office, his mind was spinning in circles. -For a moment, that girl….she reminded me of…No, it couldn't be…-- Inuyasha shook his head wildly to erase the thought. -I should stop torturing myself over this…it was just my mind playing tricks on me… -- Inuyasha comforted himself with the fact that he would never have to see the woman again.

As he entered, Sesshomaru chose to only send a small nod of recognition. The day Sesshomaru would rise to greet his brother would be the day that Jaken renounced Sesshomaru as the rightful supreme commander of the world and the most admirable and beautiful man ever created. In other words, it was something that could only be possible in another dimension.

Sesshomaru retained a bored look on his face as he turned to face the man in front of his desk. "Welcome, Brother. It's been a long time."

"Not long enough," Inuyasha growled under his breath. The carved glare that had disappeared upon his first look at Kagome, was now shadowing his face once more. He slumped into a chair, his handsome features clouded in resentment. "Can we make this quick?"

"Why?" Sesshomaru shot back, dryly. "Do you have more moping to do? Some urgent matters only an antisocial recluse could fathom?"

Inuyasha's face darkened even further. "I'm going to do your fucking show, so get off my back."

Sesshomaru chose not to respond, didn't even show that he was glad to have Inuyasha as his star. After he leisurely signed a few more papers on his desk, he spoke once more. "You'll be starting filming with the rest of the cast on Tuesday. Hiten will have back scripts for you to read, and he'll introduce you to everyone today. I, on the other hand, am far too busy to lead you around on a leash, so you can find your own way to the stage…" He turned back to the papers, making it plain as day that they were far more interesting than humoring his younger brother.

Inuyasha grunted, pulling himself out of the chair, and heading swiftly towards to door. "Don't worry, I'd rather not spend my time where I'm not wanted!" he shot back.

He turned the knob, swinging the door open violently. Sesshomaru's voice intoned deeply behind him. "You should move on, Inuyasha…"

Inuyasha's shoulder's tightened in a warning as he paused in the doorway. "…And you should shut your mouth!" He slammed the door, making the layer of frosted glass shake angrily.

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"Guess what, Miroku?"

Rin was at it again.

"…What…?" Miroku didn't feel like guessing. He turned back to the letter he was writing, now seeing that Rin's expression meant whatever it was wasn't life-threatening. By the way she had barged into his office a moment before, the matter just might have been.

"Check out `Soap Weekly'!" She tossed the open magazine onto his crowded desk.

He swiveled lazily in his chair, leaning over the periodical. "Yeah? So what? An ad for….uh… `control-top support pantyhose'….What? What's the joke?" He stared at her blankly. He wasn't in the mood for jokes.

One of his other clients had been turning into a prima donna since her last commercial. A woman named Tsubaki- she was convinced that she should be the quintessential archetype for anti-aging cream, and that Miroku should focus all of his efforts on her. What a silly, confused, not to mention domineering, woman. He had been spending half his morning trying to convince her that he would find her more work, with time….and, if the casting directors didn't cast her, it didn't necessarily mean that they were disillusioned and naïve idiots, as she had so proposed….

Yes, today was not shaping up to be a giggly kind of day.

Rin rolled her eyes, and took on an exasperated tone with the harassed agent. "No, Miroku. Look at the page next to it!" She laid a finger on the glossy page next to the pantyhose ad.

Miroku, after a glance at the article, snatched up the magazine, his eyes speeding along every line of the blurb. "That's our Kagome!" He was speechless for a moment, as his lips worked to form words. "She's in-in….a magazine!"

Rin grinned. "You certainly have a way with words, smoothie- of COURSE she's in a magazine! `Shards of Our Memories' has been getting raves from all the critics- no wonder `Soap Weekly' wrote them up!"

Rin breathed with excitement, pointing at the bottom of the article. "And- LOOK! Look what I could win!"

Miroku looked intently at the box at the bottom. " `Shards' Contest.." He read. " `You can win a tour of the set, along with a limo ride to a dinner with the stars of the best new soap on TV- Kagome Higurashi and Kouga Murane……'……yes? Rin, you're really weird. You see Kagome on a daily basis, and we already had dinner with Kouga…"

She smiled, starry-eyed. "But, they weren't FAMOUS back then, Miroku! You should watch the show more often- the characters are so wonderful! And Damien and Maya have such a wonderful romance!" she gushed. "Also, I'd get a limo ride! And a tour of the set!"

Miroku cocked his head at his hair-brained assistant, giving her a quizzical stare, and trying to remember if he had in fact hired this girl for her intelligence….maybe her pretty face had skewed his reasoning during the selection process…

He rolled his eyes at her antics, and then stood to usher her out of his office so he could finally get some work done. "If it makes you happy, Rin, why don't we visit Kagome on the set tomorrow? Now, please go and do some of whatever I hired you for…"

"Really? We'll go? Neat!"

Miroku shut the door behind her, shaking her head. Soap operas turned girls into such freaks.

At least he felt like giggling now.

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"This picture is beautiful, Kagome. I wish I were this photogenic!" Ayame studied the `Soap Weekly' article for a moment, then handed it back. "Are you enjoying all this attention?"

"It's….different. It's nice to be out in the open, and recognized for all of my hard work….but it's sort of a shame that I'm getting all the publicity when everyone here does so much to make the show happen."

Ayame laughed, her eyes twinkling, and flawless skin crinkling in merriment. "You're one silly girl. It would help you to stop thinking about everyone else around you for a moment, and enjoy the spotlight. After all, we're only entitled to our fifteen minutes of fame…..might as well take it as it comes."

"I guess you're right…."

"Believe the old, veteran hag….she always knows best." The redhead winked at Kagome.

"I'll keep that in mind…." Kagome laughed, as Ayame left her to visit her dressing room down the hall.

As Ayame left her alone near the food table, looking over today's script, she noticed a bit of commotion among the people working on the stage. Before filming, a happy, excited buzz like this was unprecedented. It was more likely to hear sounds of stressed screaming then it was to hear the fangirlish giggling that had reached her ears.

Raising an eyebrow, she moved closer to the stage door, wondering why even the detached Kanna looked like she might eventually show an emotion on her sheet-white face.

Obviously Kagome was growing very interested. These people were used to dramatic twists and used to famous people, so what was all the commotion? She picked up her buttered blueberry muffin from her paper plate, taking a quick bite. She noticed the crowd around the door was quickly moving back to let somebody in. Kagome stood on her toes for a moment, trying to peer over the sea of heads.

Suddenly, out of the bustling crowd appeared Hiten in his normal jeans and ball-cap, trailed closely by a tall, white-haired man. Kagome swallowed her bite of muffin, noticing that it was the same man that had held the door open for her that morning.

She also noticed how handsome he was upon giving him a longer glance. Though she had originally mistaken him for Sesshomaru, she saw that he had a boyish, rugged face that showed much more emotion the producer's cold glance. He was currently surveying the set around him, without an actor's trademark million-watt smile. He looked intently at the furnished sets and bright lights, his bright eyes roving across the designs.

She quickly realized that Hiten was approaching her, and she gently set her food down on the table beside her.

Hiten smiled widely as he patted Kagome's shoulder lightly. "Good Morning, Miss Higurashi. Do you remember Inuyasha Tanaka?" He motioned to Inuyasha, ten steps behind, now intent on the script in his hand.

Kagome's eyes widened a little, recognizing the name. "I've heard a lot about him around the set…He's an actor, right?"

Hiten laughed jovially. "More than an actor. He was the star of `Soul Sharing', and he was a teen idol. Everyone knew his name….well, except you, of course…."

"I'm sorry…I've never been one for soap operas…well, until now, at least…"

"That's just fine. Why don't I introduce you two….." He turned back to Inuyasha. "Inuyasha! There's someone here I'd like you to meet!"

Inuyasha nodded slowly, rolling up the script in his hands, and gracefully strolling to where Hiten stood. Kagome breathed in a little, waiting for him to focus his attention to her. She hoped that she wouldn't be too much of a simpleton for him. He seemed very experienced in the atmosphere of the set, while she was still floundering in the excitement of it all.

As soon as he laid eyes on her, Inuyasha recognized the girl from the lobby. She had dark, round, shining eyes, and a brilliant smile gracing her sweet face. But, he didn't notice her beauty. He was only seeing the eerie resemblance she had to an old memory. His golden eyes bore into Kagome's, making her feel very self-conscious.

"Inuyasha, this is Kagome Higurashi. This is her first major role, but she's doing a wonderful job as our leading lady…."

Kagome stuck out her hand for Inuyasha to shake, giving him a hesitant smile, and waiting for him to say something. -Wow. I must look like a total fool. That's why he's not speaking.-

Inuyasha's face suddenly altered into a bitter sneer, as he looked at her outstretched hand.

"What is this- some kind of sick joke?!"

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….Stick around for next chapter….. "All My Children"

R&R please